Cindy Ong Pik Yin

Cindy Ong Pik Yin

JBP, PPT

Personal information
Born	7 June 1984 Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia
Education	Drury University, USA
Occupation(s)	Competitive Swimmer, Masters Swimmer
Medal record FINA World Masters Championship, Gwangju 50m Butterfly 100m Butterfly 100m Freestyle 4 x 50m Mixed Freestyle Relay 160-199 4 x 50m Mixed Medley Relay 160-199 50m Freestyle 50m Breaststroke

Cindy Ong Pik Yin is a Malaysian competitive swimmer. She has been swimming competitively since 1989 and has qualified for 2004 Athens Olympic Games in four events. She is a five-time world champion.^[1][2]

Early life

Ong was born in Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia.^[2] She is the younger sibling of Allen Ong,^[3] Malaysian former swimmer, and niece of Ong Mei Lin,^[4] who was one of Malaysia's first female swimmers to represent the country in the Olympics.^[5]

Career

Swimming

Training and competing throughout pregnancy, she clinched second place at the Malaysia Masters Speedo International Championship despite being 8 months pregnant.^[6][4]

In 2017, Ong competed in her first World Masters Championship.^[4]

Seven months following the delivery of her third child, she competed among 9,000 participants in the 2017 FINA World Masters in Budapest, Hungary, placing 5th in the 100m Freestyle event.^[7]

Her unique blend of physical & mental performance keeps her agile at 36 years old. She snagged the title of World No.1 in the 2020 FINA World Masters 50 meter Freestyle race.^[8]

Ong is currently ranked No. 2 in the 100 meter Butterfly,^[3] out touched by Spain's Erika Villa.^[9]

Coach

Ong is also a certified swimming coach.^[10][4]

• Amateur Swimming Union of Malaysia (ASUM) Level 2 Swimming Coach
• Amateur Swimming Union of Malaysia (ASUM) Certified Swimming Instructor
• National Sports Council of Malaysia (NSC) Level 2 Sports Science
• Amateur Swimming Union of Malaysia (ASUM) Technical Official Grade 3
• Life Saving Society Malaysia (LSSM) Bronze Medallion
• Life Saving Society of Malaysia Certificate of Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation (LSSM CPR)
• International Life Saver (ILS)
• Ex-head coach, Stingray Swimming Club (2006–2011)

Accolades

She was presented with the title of Perak's Sportswoman of the Year in 2005, in recognition of breaking 5 Malaysia national records, winning 6 gold medals^[11] and bagging the Best Sportswoman^[12] title at the 2004 SUKMA Games.

For all of these, and for her significant contribution to the overall Malaysian swimming sport, Ong was awarded the Pingat Pekerti Terpilih title in 2006.^[4]

In the 2004 Sukma Games, Ong won 6 gold medals, contributed 12.8% of the medal tally for Perak and was awarded the Best Sportswoman Award.^[11]

In the 2019 FINA World Masters Championship in Gwangju, South Korea, Ong won 5 gold and 2 silver medals from that championship.^[4]

Shortly after, she was recognized by The Malaysia Book of Records for the Most Gold Medals Won by an Individual Swimmer in a World Masters Championship (FEMALE) in 2019.^[5][4]

Education

Ong was awarded the Drury Academic Honor Scholarship and obtained a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in Psychology & Sociology from Drury University, Missouri, United States.^[3]

Personal life

Ong was married to an Asian American.^[5] She has three children: Hayden, Kiara, and Connor.^{[5] [13]}

Sexual Assault

In May 2021, Ong came forward on how she had encountered sexual harassment and assault over the years, including from a national coach when she was a teenager.^[14] After this was shared, then the former Youth and Sports Minister, Datuk Seri Reezal Merican Naina Merican ordered his officers and the National Sports Council (NSC) to contact and assist Ong and help lodge a police report about the acts committed on Ong.^[15] Ong decided not to pursue a case against the coach or publicly name him as she believed too much time has passed.^[16] Ong is now an advocate for anti sexual harassment and wishes to be a catalyst of change for others.^[17]

Searching a missing plane

Ong's grandfather was reported to be one of the first Malaysians to own a private airplane. However, the current status and the condition of the airplane are unknown. Ong is now actively searching for the plane's current whereabouts.^[18]

Prominent awards and rankings

Year	Award	Category	Result	References
	All Time Top 10 FINA Masters World Ranking	50m Butterfly Long Course 35-39 age-group		[19]
2020	Japan Masters National Record Holder	50m freestyle	Fastest, 26.71	[20][2]
		100m butterfly	Second fastest, 1:04.31
2019	FINA World Masters		Multiple Gold Medalist	[2]
	Malaysia Book of Records for Most Gold Medals Won by Individual Swimmer in World Masters Championship (FEMALE)
	World Masters Rankings	50m Butterfly Long Course	2nd
		100m Butterfly Long Course	1st
		Relay 160-199 Mixed Freestyle Long Course	1st
		Relay 160-199 Mixed Medley Long Course	2nd
		50m Butterfly Short Course	3rd
		100m Butterfly Short Course	3rd
2017	Japan Masters Ranking	50m Freestyle Short Course	1st
		25m Butterfly Short Course	2nd
		50m Breaststroke Short Course	1st
		50m Breaststroke Short Course	1st
2006	Pingat Pekerti Terpilih (P.P.T) Title Recognition by the Sultan of Perak, Malaysia		Awarded	[4]
2005	Perak SportsWoman of the year		Nominated and chosen
2004	SUKMA (Malaysian Games)	6 gold medals, 5 national records Awarded the Most Outstanding Female Athlete Award		[5]
2001	JBP (Jasa Bakti PEMADAM) by Ministry of Education & United Nations (as a role model for the young generation)		Awarded title	[4]
2000	Most Outstanding Female Athlete Award in SUPER, (Perak Sports)			[4]

Masters Swimming

Medal Record
Year	Competition	Location	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Record(s)
2020	Tokyoto Spring Short Course Meters	Tokyo,  Japan	7[21]	1		2
2019	Milo/PraKL Age Group Swimming Championship	Malaysia	5			5
	SEASF Masters Swimming Championship	Jakarta,  Indonesia	10	2		10
	FINA World Masters Championship	Gwangju,  Korea	5[22]	2
	Super Renang/PIAG (Perak Invitational Age Group) Swimming Championship Ipoh	Ipoh,  Malaysia	2
	Aminovital Singapore Masters Swimming Championship	Singapore	8[5]
	Japan Masters Swimming Sprint Championship	Tokyo,  Japan	7	1
	Speedo Malaysia International Masters Swimming Championship (MVP of the meet)	Malaysia	13			11
	Indonesia Open Aquatic Championship Master Swimming	Jakarta,  Indonesia	7	1
2018	MILO/PraKL Age Group Swimming Championship	Kuala Lumpur,  Malaysia	3
	Southeast Asia Pacific (SEAP) Singapore	Singapore	9	1
	Malaysia Invitational Age Group Swimming Championship	Malaysia			1
	Asian Masters Swimming Championship	Nagoya,  Japan	7[21]			7
	Asia Pacific Masters Games	Penang,  Malaysia	6			6
	Singapore Masters Short Course Swimming Championship	Singapore	8		1
	Speedo Malaysia International Masters Swimming Championship	Malaysia	5			5
2017	Southeast Asia Pacific (SEAP) Singapore	Singapore	9	1		3
	FINA World Masters Championship[5]	Budapest,  Hungary
	Japan Masters Swimming Sprint Championship	Tokyo,  Japan	8
	Speedo Malaysia International Masters Swimming, Championship	Kuching, Sarawak,  Malaysia	7			7
2016	Southeast Asia Pacific (SEAP) Singapore	Singapore	5			3
	Japan Masters Long Course Swimming Championship (@ 3 months pregnant)	Japan	5	1
	Singapore Masters Short Course Swimming Championship (@ 6 months pregnant)	Singapore	4	2	1
	Speedo Malaysia International Masters Swimming Championship (@ 8 months pregnant)	Malaysia		2

Malaysian Amateur Swimming achievements

Year	Achievements
1998-2004	Member of the Malaysian National Team
N/A	Multiple Malaysian Records Holder[4]
1998 - 2008	Participated in 5 SUKMA (Malaysian Games)
2004	SUKMA (Malaysian Games) 6 gold medals, 5 national records Awarded the Most Outstanding Female Athlete Award.[4] First time in Malaysian history for a swimmer to break 5 national records in a single meet
N/A	Qualified for Athens Olympic Games in 4 events[4]
2001	Southeast Asian Games medalist, en route breaking the national record
2000	SUKMA (Malaysian Games) gold medal, national and meet record
1999	Malaysian Open gold medalist en route breaking 50m freestyle national record at age 15

Collegiate achievements in the United States

Year	Achievements
2001-2004	Drury University Athletic Scholarship recipient[4]
N/A	Member of Drury University's Women's Varsity Swimming Team
N/A	Ranked top ten in 4 events in NCAA Division 2 top 50 times to date
N/A	Drury University team record holder of the 100, 200 Butterfly, 4 x 50 Freestyle Relay and 4 x 50 Medley Relay
N/A	NCAA Division 2 Championship qualifier – individual and team
2004	US National Champion & record holder in 200 Butterfly in NCAA Division 2 Swimming & Diving Championship
2004	Drury University's MVP Women's Program[4]
2003-2004	Nominated and chosen as National Swimmer of the Week by collegeswimming.com twice in a season
2002-2004	Participated in varsity Conference and NCAA Division 2 Swimming & Diving Championship
2002-2004	Drury Panther Honor Roll[4]
2002-2004	18 times NCAA 2 All-American honor by the College Swimming Coaches Association of America[4]
2002-2004	8 times Conference (one of NCAA's conferences) Champion
2002-2003	Outstanding swimmer of the meet at Christmas Invitational at the University of Arkansas, Little Rock[4]
2002	NCAA Division 2 Championship silver medal 200 fly

References

1. Walt, Reid (2021-05-18). "FINA WORLD MASTERS TOP 10 - LONG COURSE METERS 2019" (PDF). FINA. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-06-24. Retrieved 2021-06-21.
2. Guan, Kng Zheng (2021-02-24). "Swimmer Cindy maintains her World No 1 status | New Straits Times". NST Online. Retrieved 2021-08-03.
3. "Perak swimmer breaks Nurul's 17-year-old 100m freestyle mark". The Star. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
4. "World No: 1 Swimmer Cindy Ong talks about Competing, Staying Beautiful & Raising 3 Extraordinary Kids". Mother, Baby & Kids. 2021-03-29. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
5. Chalil, Melanie (13 November 2019). "Swimming champ: Malaysian mother of three Cindy Ong can't stop winning despite permanent shoulder damage | Malay Mail". www.malaymail.com. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
6. "Baby Bump doesn't slow down Cindy". Retrieved 2021-06-20 – via PressReader.
7. "FINA World Masters Championships 2017 in Budapest - Results". mastersbudapest2017.microplustiming.com. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
8. Walt, Reid (2021-03-28). "FINA WORLD MASTERS TOP 10 - SHORT COURSE METERS 2020" (PDF). FINA. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-06-24. Retrieved 2021-06-21.
9. "Butterfly queen Cindy is ranked No. 1 in the world". The Star. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
10. Ishak, Fadhli (2020-03-25). "Free online coaching from Masters champion Cindy | New Straits Times". NST Online. Retrieved 2021-08-03.
11. CHAN, PETER. "Swimmer Cindy bags RM37,000 for her Sukma feat". The Star. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
12. "Perak swimmer Cindy stamps her mark". The Star. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
13. https://www.nst.com.my/sports/others/2023/11/977853/now-single-cindy-back-game-eyes-2025-world-masters-championships#:~:text=The%20divorce%2C%20initiated%20in%202020,It%20is%20a%20big%20relief.
14. "M'sian Calls Out Man Who Said Athlete Deserves to be Assaulted Because of Her Clothing - WORLD OF BUZZ". 28 May 2021.
15. "Sex harassment runs deep in sports industry, claims ex-national swimmer". 27 May 2021.
16. "Reezal orders officers, NSC to assist Cindy over sexual harassment claims | Daily Express Online - Sabah's Leading News Portal". 27 May 2021.
17. "He definitely tried to rape me: Cindy Ong tells of harrowing experience with coach". 13 June 2021.
18. "A M'sian lady's search for her grandpa's legacy led her to discover… a missing plane?". 21 December 2021.
19. "FINA Masters Top 10 | fina.org - Official FINA website". admin.fina.org. Retrieved 2021-03-16.
20. "Swimming: Butterfly queen Cindy is ranked No. 1 in the world | The Star". www.thestar.com.my. Retrieved 2021-03-16.
21. Ishak, Fadhli (2020-02-22). "Hard work pays off for Cindy | New Straits Times". NST Online. Retrieved 2021-08-03.
22. Ishak, Fadhli (2019-08-15). "Cindy shines with another gold | New Straits Times". NST Online. Retrieved 2021-08-03.